The Seventh Cross (1944)

Must See Movie...

From my favorite movies..

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Seven men escape from a concentration camp in pre-WW2 Nazi Germany. The Nazis place seven crosses in the courtyard of the camp, with orders that each captured escapee be put to death on them. One by one the men are captured, save one. That man (Spencer Tracy) must try and find help so he can escape the country, though his experiences have made him cynical that there are good people left in Germany.Fascinating film with a nice script, fine acting, and beautiful cinematography by the great Karl Freund. Interesting technique of having Ray Collins' character narrate the movie postmortem, years before the more famous Sunset Boulevard did it. Spencer Tracy gives a terrific performance even though his character really doesn't speak much, especially in the first hour. The supporting cast is excellent, with Hume Cronyn a standout. It's a little overlong but worth your time.

"The Seventh Cross" is a film I have a watched a number of times, because it stars one of my very favorite actors -- Spencer Tracy Supporting actors include Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy -- real man and wife, and this was their first film together. Cronyn was an Academy Award nominee for his performance here. The supporting actor of note was Ray Collins (of later "Perry Mason" fame), one of the Concentration Camp victims here, who doesn't survive, but posthumously continues to narrate the film.This was one of Fred Zinnemann's early directorial efforts, long before "High Noon". Interestingly, it was one of the earliest films to deal with the topic of Nazi concentration camps.The film begins with a rather tortuous and overbearing opening score. We learn that 7 POWs have escaped from a concentration camp. They represent many factions of German society -- a writer, a circus performer, a school teacher, a farmer, a Jewish grocery clerk, and 2 who appear to be political activists (Tracy and Collins). The first few minutes of the film belong to Collins, as he is the first to be hunted down, tortured, and hung on a cross to die. Very little dialog (other than his narration), but this is probably the most dramatic of all of Collins' many screen performances. The Nazi commandant vows to find each escapee and hang each on another of the 7 crosses (hence the title).The focus then shifts to Tracy, who also has, perhaps, the least dialog of any of his screen roles...because he is a man alone. Tracy does an admirable job of conveying his terror through facial expressions. We follow his journey to his home town of Mainz where surely his former girl friend will help him...but of course, she doesn't and even threatens to report him. The scene where Tracy watches as another escapee is chased along the rooftops is particularly effective...as the escapee elects to commit suicide, rather than be captured. Although he feels totally alone, here and there people give him a little help, and unbeknownst to him a small group of old friends are plotting to help him...if they can find him or he can find them. But, everyone is suspicious of almost everyone else. Who will choose loyalty to a friend over loyalty to the Third Reich? Tracy's character does escape Germany and he regains his faith in humanity...although the ending is quite abrupt.Among the supporting actors of note were Signe Hasso (good and simple performance), Hume Cronyn (as a loyal friend; good performance); Jessica Tandy (as Cronyn's wife, also a good performance); Agnes Moorehead (in an odd role for her); and Herbert Rudley (as a loyal friend, played well).This is a very well done movie, and many will want it on their DVD shelf. But it is a depressing film despite the upbeat ending.

Spencer Tracy headlines a fine cast as George Heisler, an escapee from a Nazi concentration camp in 1936 who has to depend on help from old friends to make his escape successful, all the while not really knowing who he can trust and being actively sought out by the Gestapo. The sense of fear and paranoia that's developed by the movie is quite ominous. Like Heisler, as the viewer you can never really be sure who can be trusted. Nazi Germany is portrayed (accurately!) as a dangerous place, unsympathetic to anyone who might be even remotely opposed to the regime. There's a sense of hopelessness here right from the start. Heisler is one of seven escapees - six of whom are quickly recaptured. Heisler himself feels totally alone, unsure who to turn to for assistance. He finally connects with an old friend (Paul, played by Hume Cronyn - whose wife Liesel was played by Jessica Tandy.) Not knowing that Heisler is a fugitive, Paul and Liesel take him in, and as they slowly discover what's going on, they become his hope and his lifeline.There are some major weaknesses to this, unfortunately, which prevent it from being a first-class film. Tracy's role is unfortunately limited. The first half of the story especially is actually narrated more than acted - the narration being offered by one of Heisler's fellow escapees who died, and the movie implies is watching over Heisler as he tries to stay out of the Gestapo's clutches. The movie would have been well advised to have taken better advantage of Tracy's considerable acting talents. The addition of a romance (completely out of left field) between Heisler and a local waitress in the movie's last half hour seemed bizarre and totally out of place. Probably because of the sudden focus on the quasi-romance, Heisler's ultimate escape comes across as surprisingly (and disappointingly) easy and undramatic.Aside from the believable portrayal of the bleakness of life in Nazi Germany, the movie is probably most surprising for offering at the same time a rather hopeful portrayal - the point is repeatedly made that not all Germans are soulless Nazis, and there are many individual Germans who take great chances to help Heisler. That was a bit surprising to me, since the movie was made during the height of World War II (in 1944) and as a result one might have expected a more negative portrayal of Germans than was actually offered. This was a good movie - it could have been a great movie if not for the weaknesses I mentioned above.

Seventh Cross, The (1944) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Hard hitting Ww2 drama has Spencer Tracy playing one of seven men who escape from a concentration camp. When the other six men are captured or killed, Tracy knows that the entire country will be looking for him so his desperate search for help grows more difficult. Whenever great WW2 films are discussed this one here hardly ever gets mentioned, which is a real shame because this film turned out to be a real gem that works on so many levels and once again features a great performance by Tracy. Zinnemann does a great job directing this film and what I loved most is the fact that Tracy's character is under constant threat of being captured and sent back to the camp. Tracy can't trust anyone and must take big risks in trying to reach out for anyone to help him and this here is perfectly captured by the director. There's a tense atmosphere running throughout the film and it's what I'd compare to a feather blowing in the wind. Tracy's performance has him, what seems like, floating through the air because we can feel the pain and terror in him of being caught. To make matters worse, he reaches his hometown where he must try and decide which of his former friends would help him and which would turn him in. Tracy's performance is very deep and intense but it seems as if he is walking on egg shells throughout the film and floating in the air. The way he moves about is something truly amazing to watch. Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy play a husband and wife who Tracy goes to for help. Cronyn nearly steals the film with his flawless performance. The only thing that hinders the film is some of the narration, which is a tad bit over the top at times.